BY BRADEN CARTWRIGHT
Daily Post Staff Writer
A man who allegedly yelled homophobic slurs while attacking another man dressed as a woman in downtown Palo Alto will have the criminal charges against him dismissed, a Santa Clara County judge has ruled.
Alexander Furrier, 26, will be allowed to go to therapy rather than face a criminal sentence after his attorney successfully argued on Tuesday that Furrier’s bipolar disorder, heightened by his drinking and use of MDMA, made him delusional leading up to the fight on Oct. 10, 2021 at 1:30 a.m. at the corner of University Avenue and Waverley Street. Furrier was arrested a few blocks away at the top of a stairwell after a police dog bit his leg. He has filed a legal claim asking the city to pay him $5 million for his injuries while he fights felony charges of battery, hate crime and assault on a police dog.
The city rejected the claim, opening the door for Furrier to sue.
‘Hateful anger’
Deputy District Attorney Tessa Stephenson argued against Furrier getting a diversion on Tuesday.
“Defendant’s actions were the result of hateful anger and an unwillingness to accept accountability, not a mental health condition beyond his control,” she wrote in her motion.
Furrier’s victim, Mark “Brandy” Merritt, required spinal cord surgery five days after the attack and was in the hospital for a month, Stephenson said.
Furrier was motivated by “bigotry, entitlement and rage,” and he still hasn’t taken responsibility, she wrote.
Defense said fight was mutual
Furrier’s lawyer, Trisha Luciano, painted a different picture of what happened in her motion.
The fight was mutual, and Merritt was on methamphetamine at the time, Luciano said.
Merritt was “intoxicated and agitated” and made statements to police that aren’t reliable, she said.
Merritt stayed in the hospital because doctors discovered back issues unrelated to the altercation with Furrier, she said.
Merritt died on Jan. 13, 2022, of a meth overdose at the Opportunity Center in Palo Alto.
Since Furrier’s arrest, he has gone to two 30-day drug treatment programs, and a doctor determined that his mental health contributed to his crime, Luciano said.
Yoga is part of treatment
Doctors laid out a treatment plan for Furrier: weekly therapy, addiction recovery meetings, yoga, meditation and exercise, as well as medication.
Furrier’s mom and sister will support him, and he is enrolled in online courses at Harvard Business School in pursuit of an MBA, Luciano said.